Sunday, January 9, 2022

Two Steps Back

It's been a bummer of a last few days. 

I mean, there's the usual gripes (no need to detail) but on top of those the damn COVID variant has hit our town (as it has everywhere else), and our little school has been particularly hammered. On Thursday we got the news that we'd be going back to remote learning for the next couple weeks as a third of the staff...and near 20% of the student population...has had some sort of exposure, contact, or positive test result.

*sigh*

This has been particularly hard on the kids, as one might imagine. A lot of tears in my daughter's (2nd grade) class, a lot of red-faced anger and frustration in my son's (5th grade) class. Man, they hate remote learning even more (if possible) than the parents and teachers do. And, as folks can probably tell from the various news stories (and demonstrations/marches) going on, the adults hate school shut-downs A LOT.

But for my son, this is particularly rough news. His birthday is this month, and he was really looking forward to celebrating with his friends (which he didn't get to do last year). We were even planning on having kids over to our home...his "D&D club"...for a night of proper Dungeons & Dragons and pizza swilling. You know...the kind you like to do when you're 11 or 12 years old? That has now been postponed, at least till February.

Which sucks. Duh.

Sorry...it's just been such a downer around these parts, that I've been spending my time trying to find ways to entertain and cheer my family...keep spirits up, you know? Which means I haven't had the time/brainpower to blog that I'd like. And, of course, having the kids home during the day just makes blogging all the harder (especially when they need to source my laptop for class). 

In more positive news, my son had his first turn altar serving at (5pm) Mass yesterday. He really enjoyed the experience, and it was fun to watch him. My daughter was very excited to see her brother in the white alb, and she even applauded at the end of Mass (after he managed to snuff the last of the candles)...a trifle embarrassing for him, perhaps, but that's what little sisters are for. 

Anyway.

I'll take what positives I can. The Seahawks play their last game of the season today, and after the crap-sandwich season they've had, being done IS a positive. Weekends can be focused on gaming or soccer which still continues (knock on wood) and has re-started now that the holidays are over and the snow has finally melted. 

But. Damn. The 'Rona virus. Just...sucks, man. I am so frustrated by...what...going on three years of this crap? Yeah, we're entering our third year of it. Such a weight, such a burden of stress on my family. Which places a burden of stress on me (masking and self-imposed isolation by itself troubles ME very little). It's...frustrating. And my family is in a far more fortunate position than other families.

OKAY. Time to pull my head out of my ass. I'm going to write-up a list of 50 or so blog topics and start pounding them out this week. Nothing cures the blues like work, and internet scribbling is my main "work" these days. Now that I've made note of my depression/frustration, I will attempt to refrain from dwelling on the subject over the rest of January, so as not to annoy/bum folks out.

Mmm...but I might write a little about "politics" in gaming.
; )

13 comments:

  1. Starting with that loss in the playoffs to the Rams last January, 2021 was nothing but a dumpster fire for the Seahawks

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    1. Yeah. Worst I've seen since that loss to Marc Bulger in the Hasselback days.
      : (

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  2. I've been enjoying your blog for a while. I came across it when I first started homebrewing a B/X Dungeon World hybrid for my kids.
    Since the kid angle first introduced me to you, this new post really moves me to make my first comment. Just to say thanks for sharing. A year ago we had all hoped this would be the school year without Corona closings. Now E-learning is robbing kids of the simple pleasure of snow days AND people still can't get it together enough to slow down the spread of the beast.

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    1. It's tough for everyone but children, while resilient little cusses, are being developmentally impacted. Which sucks.

      Just means parents need to work harder, I guess.

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  3. For the record, we teachers also miss having snow days. :(

    Nearly a third of my students were out today. I had one class where it was me and five kids.

    I look forward to your politics in gaming post. Whenever I hear that phrase, I can imagine my late grandfather going "The Democrats are letting the Gays ruin D&D!" (He never actually said that, it's just what I hear.)

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    1. Imagined or not, I find that a rather amusing thought (not sure how being gay could ruin D&D...isn't the act of playing elf people kind of "gay" anyway?).
      ; )

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    2. I was taking a low key jab at folks who whine and cry about "wokeness" in gaming.

      As for playing an elf being gay, I always subscribed to the philosophy that if someone can clearly tell what gender and sexuality your elf is, you are elfing entirely wrong.

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    3. Oh, I know.
      : )

      As for elfing correctly, I think how an elf identifies is really a matter of one's age. Kind of like David Bowie.

      [rest in peace]
      ; )

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    4. Dude speaking of... I was always vocal about my opinion that all elves in Shadowrun 2nd edition look like David Bowie. TELL ME I'M WRONG.

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    5. Elves in EVERY '80s RPG look like David Bowie. It's possible that a lot of designers were Bowie fans...it's also possible DB just had a very "elfin" appearance and seemed like a good model?

      I mean, I know Ziggy Stardust was supposed to be some kind of "spaceman" but there was a lot of fantasy/SciFi crossover in the 70s....

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    6. I am now wondering how many middle schoolers named their first D&D character Ziggy Stardust in the 70's.

      ...I often wished that I had been born in '71, so I could've had a taste of the decade at least... but then I'd be 50 instead of 40 and I'd be old enough to be my wife's dad. (Which...biologically I am, but you get the idea...)

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  4. We had our first kid during the pandemic (she's going on 1.5 years now) and it's been difficult, but I can't imagine how hard it must be for kids in school. At least our kid has been able to go to daycare and interact with other kids.

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    1. Wow...congrats and best wishes. I thought have a new baby and moving 6,000 miles to Paraguay for the first three years of her life (and then moving back) would wreck my daughter, but she's a remarkably well-adjusted seven year old now.

      [probably helps that the parents had some 30-40 years of "normal" to imprint the child with, despite the weirdness of constant moving between countries, cultures, and languages. Quite possibly your child will end up much the same as yourself]

      : )

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